EasyKart UK - Round 2 - Llandow, Wales

Can anyone stop Langley?

Light class champion takes another victory

Early doors it still might be in the Easykart Championship, but on the evidence of his Llandow performance, Terry Langley is beginning to look positively Schumacher-esque.

Or should that be Button-like?

In the first Timed Qualifying session, he set the fastest time and then coolly sat out the second, opting to watch and wait and see if his rivals could beat him. They couldn’t. Alex Vincent sealed his first ever front-row starting position - with a next-best time a tenth shy of Langley’s - and was justifiably delighted with the progress he is making. If he was on a reality TV show, people would be talking about ‘the journey’ he’s undergone.

Alex knew at the start of the pre-final he would need to make a superb getaway, if he was going to be able to live with Terry and not get hung out to dry by the drivers on the inside line for the first corner. Sadly, he didn’t - but Sam Smithson, Owen Jenman, Adrian Crockett and Sam Massey did. Langley had sufficient advantage over Smithson to take the chequered and register another psychological blow to arguably, his closest rival.

But if it was Vincent who’d felt mugged at the start of the pre-final, it was certainly Smithson’s turn in the main race. Langley positioned himself superbly to keep the pack behind him, but it was Jenman and a resurgent Steve Youle who slotted in behind him as they swept into the first bend.

Initially, Terry and Owen were able to create a small gap over their pursuers, as Sam overtook Steve by late-braking into the hairpin at the end of the long back straight. However, carried forward by his momentum, Smithson couldn’t slow enough and over-shot the apex, allowing Youle to hold the more conventional line and re-pass him on the exit. It was ‘game on’.

Postcard from Round 2

A lap later, Smithson launched another move at the same spot and this time made it stick, whilst the impeccably turned-out Sam Massey tried to go with him, but found the door firmly shut by Youle.

Langley’s metronomic smoothness had begun to take its toll on Jenman, who simply couldn’t match the champion’s faultless driving and the latter began to lose ground. Behind them, in a moment of déjà vu, Youle found himself watching an identikit replica of Smithson’s first passing attempt at the hairpin as the impressive John Langridge lunged him. And again, Steve was able to hold his line and power past John.

In the midfield, Sam Dimlow and Karl Byrne were going at it hammer and tongs as they fought each other, whilst the luckless Adrian Crockett – whose motor had failed in the pre-final – was working his way back up the order after starting from the back of the grid. Just ahead of him, Elliott Rice and Alex Vincent were enjoying a great scrap, but tripped over one another at the Hook allowing Adrian to nip between them.

Langridge had a huge look at Youle going into the Hook, but like a clubber wearing trainers found no way past Steve’s bouncer. Similarly, Jenman found himself under constant pressure from Smithson who looked like a man desperate to be freed in order to go tearing after his nemesis. In turn, this backed the pair into the Youle/Langridge train.

All this, of course, played into Langley’s hands and he extended his lead to over four seconds. Whilst Langley’s progress looked serene, battles raged behind him.

Smithson darted left and right, throwing feints to tempt Jenman off line, whilst Langridge – now up to 4th – probed for a way past both. The trio fanned across the straight as they once more plunged into the Hook. And now Massey was fast approaching.

Sam let the brakes off at the hairpin as he tried to pass Youle. Having had plenty of practice, Steve successfully repelled this latest attack. Just a few kart-lengths up the road, Langridge had wriggled into 3rd and earned himself the Karting Magazine driver of the day award for his efforts.

The last lap board served only to further ramp up the tension. Langley had the race in the bag, but as he took the chequered flag the fight for second place was about to get as rugged as Susan Boyle’s looks.

Jenman, Smithson, Langridge, Youle and Massey tore down to the hairpin. For Smithson, it was now or never and he attempted a move worthy of the phrase ‘do or die’. Picking a braking point somewhere near Bristol, he found Langridge and Jenman already turning in and came at them at warp speed. Miraculously all three survived but with varying fortunes. Sam ran onto the marbles, but incredibly stayed on the tarmac - whilst equally remarkably, Owen fought like a lion to retain his second place and succeeded. Taking advantage of the melee, Youle and Massey picked Langridge’s pocket, pushing him down to 5th. Jack Sales and Marc Mercer also profited, holding Smithson at bay, for 6th and 7th respectively.

Before the Heavy pre-final, 2007 World Finals winner Barnaby Pittingale was full of praise for William Smith, after the latter sealed his maiden pole position in the series. “He’s definitely the most improved driver. Last year at Whilton Mill, I was lapping him and now he’s on pole.” If he was nervous before the start, Smith clearly didn’t show it and converted his advantage into a classy win.

Kieran McCullough had his tail up after a strong run to second, demoting Pittingale to third in the pre-final. That said, Barnaby hinted that he’s deliberately let Kieran past, in order to give himself the inside line for the first corner behind the fast-starting Will. He said, “I’ve got loads left for the final.”

As the flag dropped, Pittingale latched onto the pole man’s bumper and shoved them clear of McCullough. Kieran reacted in typical style and with a combative move, elbowed Pittingale aside to briefly take second. Pittingale responded with an incisive move at the hairpin and again took up the chase to try and prevent Will breaking away. McCullough attacked again at the Hook only to find Pittingale luridly flicking his kart’s rear end out to block him. Brian Parias had used his guile and many years of experience to get himself up to 4th, hotly pursued by Mark Lawrence.

As the race began to settle into a rhythm, Smith and Pittingale began to edge away from the pack. “Come on Barners” urged his family, as the young Londoner did his utmost to catch the leader who was visibly beginning to open a gap. Parias doggedly held onto his 4th spot, but was holding up an impatient train behind him. Lawrence was climbing all over his rear bumper, but Parias was equal to every challenge. Behind them, Richard Friend and Josef Wright were having a magnificent tear-up over eighth place.

‘Sir’ Tim Hill and Howard Kayman were embroiled in a competition that had started in testing and they were still chasing each other round Llandow’s twists and turns.

Smith’s victory was assured when he began to lap the backmarkers. He passed them cleanly but one innocently baulked Pittingale and that sealed the deal. Smith was in imperious form and looked every inch the Championship victory as he led the field home, over five seconds clear of Pittingale who now had his hands full, trying to keep McCullough at bay. Barnaby defended to the line and just nicked it from Kieran. Parias had managed to shake off Lawrence who had dropped to an eventual 7th, losing out to Friend and Gary Poynter. In a gesture that sums up the spirit in the Easykart paddock, Stig Elboth and Darren Price shook hands and acknowledged their race-long fight for 19th.

In the Junior class, William Lampitt won the wet pre-final, but Brad Fairhurst - who had raced on slicks in that encounter – delivered a storming drive to win the dry main race.

In Timed Qualifying Connor Hambleton had set the benchmark time in the first session and coolly sat in race control watching the lap times to see if he needed to go out again. As Patrick Lay punched in a fast time, Hambleton said, “Right let’s go out.” As it was his earlier time remained unbeatable, although Brad Fairhurst ran him close – just four one hundredths shy of Connor’s best lap.

A shower beforehand created tricky conditions for the slick-shod runners, not least Hambleton who had a nightmarish start. There were no such problems for William Lampitt who scored a narrow victory over Tiernay Oliver and the ever-improving AJ Morris.

Beforehand, William Hill had commented that he wanted rain and promptly came through to an excellent 4th place in the pre-final, but on the now dry track he looked liked someone had attached an invisible grappling hook to his rear bumper. As the grid surged forward for the start of the main final, he seemed to shoot backwards. Lampitt held the lead but Fairhurst had rocketed from the third row up to second place and was pressing him hard.

As they ran wide at the hairpin the distinctive, pinball-esque all chrome helmet of Oliver surprised the pair of them as he pinged past to take up the running. A clumsy move saw Fairhurst clip Lampitt as he tried to find a way past and he lost a place.

Oliver looked over his shoulder and couldn’t believe his luck, he was dropping the others. So embroiled were they that neither Lampitt nor Fairhurst had seen Christopher Waldock arrowing in on them. Coming from twelfth, he quickly passed them, whilst Hambleton was also on a charge.

Perhaps Waldock’s speed was a wake-up call for Fairhurst because he began to have a real go at Waldock and eventually managed to wrest second from him. Curiously, they’d managed to drag each other back up to Oliver. Waldock also looked under threat from a resurgent Lampitt, who in turn had Hambleton homing in on him.

Lap by lap, Fairhurst was taking sizeable chunks out of Oliver’s lead: four tenths here, three tenths there. Hambleton had got into third but a collision with Waldock in the Hook unfortunately put both karts out on the spot.

With the pack again reshuffling, Fairhurst seized the initiative, whilst Jack Mitchell and Jamie Cummings survived a moment when Jack clipped the rear of Jamie’s kart, became hooked onto the exhaust and was dragged down the start/finish line before managing to free himself.

With clear air ahead of him, Brad began to dominate the race’s closing moments. Tiernay chased him hard but had nothing extra to give. After the dramas ahead and behind him, William Lampitt was in 3rd, unaware of the monumental scrap for fifth. Ten karts, in line astern were all looking for that vital opening. Patrick Lay however, clearly did not want 4th place. He wanted a trophy.

On the last lap, he was half a second down on William but as they came into the hairpin for the last time, Patrick launched a stunning manoeuvre to successfully take 3rd.

Cadet debutant Ryan Anderton surprised the paddock when he out-qualified and out-raced the first round’s dominant pair – James DeHavillande and Ronan McKenzie. William Stowell celebrated his eleventh birthday by setting the pole time just head of local star, Harrison Thomas and Anderton.

Any home advantage he might have had evaporated the moment Thomas received a black flag for passing under yellows. His removal from the pre-final gave Anderton and Stowell an easy one-two, with series leader DeHavillande trailing home over ten seconds adrift.

Anderton got a lightening start in the final to take the small grid into the first corner and immediately start to pull away. Stowell hung on to 2nd, whilst McKenzie slotted into 3rd ahead of DeHavillande who looked far less settled and poised than he did at Whilton.

Anderton may prove to be a talented find, as he was easily the fastest driver on the track and by a long chalk. Remember, Easykart is not about chequebook racing, it’s about talent on equal kit and Ryan was two seconds ahead of William in as many laps.

Ross Kayman’s entertaining battle with William Kay included a coming together, a warning flag for biffing Kay, being lapped by Anderton and was only halted by the chequered flag.

Having been over half a second behind McKenzie for three quarters of the race, DeHavillande suddenly started to motor. On lap sixteen he closed to within two tenths and then launched his attack on the last lap. With his calm, unhurried style at the wheel, he divested McKenzie of the last trophy and retained his place at the top of the points table.

Whilst many drivers suffered mixed fortunes, few could have endured a tougher weekend in Wales than Kieran McAleer. The Irishman struggled to get his motor to fire almost entirely on Saturday. With just a few minutes of the last session of the day, he finally managed to get out on track.

On race day, his fortunes improved marginally and he must have taken some comfort from a feisty Light B pre-final triumph. His luck evaporated again in the main final though, whilst Joe Jackson put in a faultless performance to win the B group trophy.

Results

Easykart Light

1st: Terry Langley
2nd: Owen Jenman
3rd: Steve Youle
4th: Sam Massey
5th: John Langridge
6th: Jack Sales

Easykart Light B

1st: Joe Jackson
2nd: Richard Washbrook
3rd: Josh Pettitt
4th: Martin Joyce
5th: Kieran McAleer
6th: Damian Hodge

Easykart Heavy

1st: Will Smith
2nd: Barnaby Pittingale
3rd: Kieran McCullough
4th: Brian Parias
5th: Richard Friend
6th: Gary Poynter

Easykart Junior

1st: Brad Fairhurst
2nd: Tiernay Oliver
3rd: Patrick Lay
4th: William Lampitt
5th: Jae Ould
6th: Dean Clayton

Easykart Cadet

1st: Ryan Anderton
2nd: William Stowell
3rd: James De Havillande
4th: Ronan McKenzie
5th: Josh Grimston
6th: Jordan Saunders